Zander looked at her with the same hooded look he always had when he was with Elvie. He turned around and headed for the building silently, and she followed suit. The entire elevator ride upstairs, she thought about Patrick. What must it be like for Zander to see him around after what happened? About the tattoo on Patrick’s forearm of the smiling girl. Of Kristal. Now, Elvie wondered why those tattoos seemed familiar—it was her number one nemesis, and her guy friend was in love with Zander’s ex-wife. How ironic, she thought. And how he, too, was still dealing with the aftermath of her betrayal. Damn! The woman was amazingly bad. Thanos-kind of bad. Elvie almost wanted to shake her head and admire Kristal for making the men of her life dance on her hands like puppets. However, she was sad about how it must feel for Zander to spend time with his father’s best friend here in the SBS every day or even look at his ex-wife’s face. Elvie’s mind reeled. Ironic, indeed. The elevator dinged
“Say it,” Zander spat. “Say it, say that it was my fault and I was too naive to even have this loyalty towards you.”“You did what you thought was right. You are a good man, Zan. I owe you!”“Fuck you, Patrick!” he yelled, “Fuck you!” He wanted to have that piece of positive vibe from him, but he couldn't for the love of God. He couldn't! The pain of losing his parents was too massive! Too—painful! Their deaths were his nightmare! Was it even his fault? Or was he just blaming someone with a new piece that would make him feel alive, even if just for a second?Patrick sat forward on the couch, his elbows propped on his knees. He clutched his head, staring down at the floor.“At that time, I told Kristal I was clean, that I’d changed, and that I was crazy about her and that I wanted her back. Damn! I know I love her, and she loves me back. She believed me. We talked about Thailand, and she said she was going to wait for me until I came back, no matter when it was. Do you know what I said
“Look, I get it, okay? I screwed up, Zander. Do you think I don’t know that? Do you think I don’t understand the gravity of my mistake? Of messing with Patrick while you were grieving your parents? Of messing up with his father before our divorce? Of messing with our contract? And messing with Elvie?”Elvie and Kristal were the same age—three years his junior—and had attended the same private schools. They weren’t friends. Barely acquaintances. Elvie’s brother, Joey, and he were the best of friends, while Elvie wrote journals, went to poetry nights, and was obsessed with autobiographies about high-end math geniuses, numbers, and math olympiads, while Kristal was focused on partying, boys, and diets. They had nothing in common, and even though Elvie had never said it in so many words, when he and Joey partied, Zander knew that before he came into the picture, Kristal had been harassing Elvie, bullying her to set them up when she wasn’t mini-bullying her in the high school halls for her
The cab came to a stop in front of Kristal’s parents mansion. He shoved his hand into his pocket, producing his wallet while thanking the gods for not driving the woman in his own car and plucking out a chunk of notes. He slapped the cash in the driver’s hand and told him to wait near the gigantic gate. Kristal stared at him, a slow grin spreading on her face.“If I’d known, that’s what it takes to get you into my parent’s place…”“Shut up, Kristal. I need to say goodbye to your Nana. This is not about you. This is not about our past. This is not about our deal, and especially not about us because there is no ‘us’ anymore. I hope you know that.”“Fine, but please don't mention Patrick. They didn't know that he was back. Please.”“Deal. But no mentioning of you helping me with your family’s share. Is that clear?”“Okay.”Half an hour later, Zander was back in the cab, his mood hitting an all-time low. Kristal’s grandmother wasn’t awake. Kristal’s parents—while happy to see me—were also
Zander had no business butting into her life more than she had allowed him to, more than she had willingly shared with him. Elvie didn’t share this with anyone. There was a reason why she’d never told him about her debt or her family life. Not even about how her parents treated her before, like how her dad used to hurt and abuse the hell out of her until she couldn't walk, or like how her mother verbally assaulted her.Her blood froze in her veins. No. There was no way. Still, she needed to ask, just to be sure.“Do you... do you know about my brother’s situation?”Zander got up from his chair, grabbing his pea coat and sliding into it.“I need another cup of coffee for this conversation. Walk with me, wife.”Elvie followed behind him. His broad shoulders were big enough to carry the entire world. He gestured for me to get into the elevator before him, and the minute the doors closed behind them, he turned to him.“You know about my brother, don’t you?”"Obviously, I know everything a
She did. She got Zander, the mother of all leads. “Kristal’s father, did what?” Bella sprayed her coffee all over her iPad in the conference room. Elvie was an ambitious little wife. She managed the workload of two people. And she wasn't even a reporter; she was an accountant, but she did get the lead. Whenever anyone had a contact or a lead they didn’t want to chase—whether they were too lazy, too busy, or simply unsure if it would result in a dead end—they threw it her way. “My sources had leaked Kristal’s father's compromising emails.” Elvie nodded, typing away on her laptop. “Now people are saying that the old man knew, and they were meant to be leaked. If it’s true, it’s a game-changer. Right?” “How on earth did you have a source? Is this your payback? I mean, surely, Kristal is a bitch who took your husband before, but really?” Bella raised her brow. “Are we children here? I am not that stupid; we are professional, Bella, Jesus!” “How do we find out?” Gerald scratched his
“Touch yourself, wife.” She did as she moaned. Elvie was a lioness at work and a lamb in bed, the perfect combination for a predator like Zander. He wanted to fight her when they were in the office and fuck her when they were anywhere else. But it was the in-between part that worried him. Because he wanted to monopolise every second of her life, even when they weren’t doing either. “Oh, God,” she moaned. “Zander,” he corrected. “Call me by my name. Tell me what you want me to do.” “I want you to screw me.” She whimpered into her own shoulder, squeezing her eyes shut, her orgasm brewing, making her legs shake. He wished he wasn’t such a bastard in this moment. “Stop.” But he was. “W-what?” she stuttered, still masturbating with the sprayer head. Zander was so hard now that he could barely think clearly. All his blood had rushed to his shaft, and if someone had asked him for his own name, he’d have had trouble answering. “Stop right now.” A raspy growl slithered between his lips
One day, Elvie noticed Joey’s face was no longer the same pale shade as the bathroom wall.He was going through something called adoptive cell transfer therapy. The treatments were invasive and uncomfortable after he had been diagnosed with lung cancer, but every time he came back to the mansion, he smiled bigger than the last time. He was still weak. He was still grey. But he no longer spoke like he was ready to die but too ashamed to let go of life because he knew how much she needed him, and that made her heart soar. Even after what he’d done, Joey was still her family. Her brother.They spent more and more time out of the mansion with Thea—short trips around the block, arm in arm, admiring the festival of colours as the garden burst into full-blown summer. Green leaves rustled above their heads, and barefoot children ran around the neighbourhood, pointing the park’s hoses at each other and spreading wild laughter like confetti. Flowers unfurled in their sleepy beds on the edges of